Jan 19
Only this time, it’s not for the northeast… But it’s a good reason to be excited anyhow, as 1) this same snow could be headed our way soon, 2) our good friends in the Wasatch could really use a little snow (you know it’s got to be “rough” for them when the snow stake on VT’s Mt.Mansfield is marking more snow than most Utah ski areas), and 3) it’s important to let the snowgods know that we really do appreciate them.
Think snow!
Jan 17
Seventeen year old Silas Chickering-Ayers, and his older brother, Lars, are some of the most talented skiers we’ve ever come across. With dad the head of ski patrol at Mad River Glen, and mom a talented skier and athlete, too…it’s not hard to imagine how these brothers ski. Lars has been out west for a couple of winters now, competing with his good friend Dylan Crossman, and friends, on the free-skiing circuit. Meanwhile, Silas has been finishing up high school in Vermont, while coaching Mad River Glen’s younger generation of hard charging skiers. His skiing is an inspiration to many.
This winter, having graduated early, Silas is heading out west to ski with his brother. We’ll share more images and footage of Lars and Silas skiing as we intercept it. Enjoy this great little short, put together by cameraman Brent Harrewyn, Mad River Glen’s “skier of the week”.
Jan 15
Now in its fourth year, the Mountain Hardwear Ski Mountaineering Race returns to Vermont’s Mad River Valley this Feb. 7, 2010 to challenge backcountry-oriented skiers of all abilities on a beautiful course connecting Mad River Glen and Sugarbush ski areas, via the Long Trail and Slidebrook area. After the “race”, the event organizers bring skiers back together over some great apres-ski and a prize giveaway.
Jan 14
This image was captured earlier this week in Vermont’s Mad River Valley, after another 2-3″ of snow blew in the night before. Approx. 15-45″ of snow has piled up in the higher elevation backcountry across the north country since Jan 1st. The skier is Ian Forgays, a long-time Mad River Glen shareholder and small business owner, from Lincoln, VT. He runs a seasonal landscaping business, and spends most of his winter skiing in Vermont’s Mad River Valley, while racking up a good number of backcountry ski days in the Adirondacks, the Whites and in Maine.
Photo: Brian Mohr/EmberPhoto.
Jan 14
Although relatively uncommon in comparison to the higher peaks of New York’s Adirondacks, New Hampshire’s White Mountains, Maine’s Katahdin and Quebec’s Gaspe, Vermont’s steeper mountainsides are susceptible to life-threatening avalanches. During this past week alone, several reports of small slab and sluff avalanches have come in. Recent winds have loaded steep gulleys and even forested steeps with significant quantities of snow, and some of this snow is sitting (like a cohesive slab) on a layer of crust formed from the Dec. 26/27 rain event… In general, many steeper slopes are prone to sluffing – a situation when the snow beneath your skis turns into a powdery soup and starts to flow down the mountain. Both slab and sluff avalanches can be extremely dangerous, so if you are venturing into very steep terrain, make sure you are traveling with some serious avalanche awareness, as well as the equipment needed in case you or someone you are with gets into trouble.
Here’s some footage of a relatively small sluff triggered by a skier on Vermont’s Mount Mansfield.
mt mansfield avalanche from JonnySki on Vimeo.
